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Hurricane Rita (2017)
Hurricane Rita, otherwise known as "The Great Storm of 2017" and "Megastorm Rita", was an extremely powerful and record-breaking hurricane becoming the most intense tropical cyclone and strongest by wind speed in history. Rita formed as a tropical wave and later emerged as a strong Category 5 hurricane in the Main Development Region. As it passes the Caribbean, it becomes larger and larger, at the same time, more intense, until it becomes super intense. It becomes so intense, reaching barometric pressure of 854 mbar, making it the most intense storm ever recorded. It also had winds of 230 mph while some speculate it could have been much stronger. It made landfall in Florida, but it didn't weaken to Category 4 for a day, leaving Southern Florida in ruins. Most of the well-known buildings, such as the Disneyland and the NHC Headquarters were turned into rubble and the NHC was forced to retreat to a different place. It later weakened and turned extratropical. It almost totally destroyed Florida, as well as most of the Caribbean, and leaving almost 15,000 dead, one of the highest in history, and damages of $1.7 trillion making it the costliest hurricane ever recorded until Whitney, and the first natural disaster to reach $1 trillion in damages. Meteorological History A westward-moving organized tropical wave, first monitored over western Africa on August 25, organized into Tropical Storm Rita around 12:00 UTC on August 30. Amid an environment of low wind shear and warm ocean temperatures, the newly formed cyclone moved generally westward while it began to rapidly intensify. It became a Category 1, and then became a major hurricane in a few days. A reconnaissance aircraft investigating the system near the Main Development Region on September 5 found the cyclone to be at Category 5 intensity. With a clear eye surrounded by a ring of extremely deep convection, Rita began its rapid deepening phase and upgraded its intensity as it moved through the northern Leeward Islands. Experts expected it to weaken, but the cyclone never retaliates, it continues to highly deepen and intensify, reaching maximum winds of 230 mph, the highest winds ever recorded from a tropical cyclone. It also reached 854 mbar, making it the most intense hurricane ever recorded, and experts suggested it was a huge anomaly. It continued to head toward the Bahamas, but the cyclone retained Category 5 intensity before making landfall near Miami, Florida on September 12. Though after making landfall, the storm only weakened to Category 4 after 18 hours. Rita continued north and east, steadily weakening over the Southeastern United States and making another landfall on Georgia as a weak hurricane, before losing tropical characteristics in North Carolina early on September 14. It became extratropical with hurricane-force winds, but it got absorbed by a low the next day. Impact and Records The impacts of Rita stretching from Cape Verde to Labrador heavily sought attention from the world. The huge size, deep pressure and catastrophic winds made by intense sea waters brought some of the areas in ruins, such as Bahamas, Caribbean and the worst hit, Florida. Prior to the arrival of the storm, forecasters are already warning of a severe hurricane hitting Florida. Most of the islands in the Caribbean, including Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, are 50% - 100% destroyed, fully stopping cruise events and displacing millions of people. Its landfall in Florida marked it as the costliest hurricane ever, amounting to $1.7 trillion, until it was overshadowed by Whitney a few weeks later. It also killed 15,000 people, making one of the deadliest in the Atlantic region. It also destroyed a lot of notable landmarks, such as Disneyland. The extremely intense environment makes it as the most intense storm ever recorded, beating Hurricane Zetaof 2005. It is also the strongest landfalling storm. Its winds are also the strongest on record; some reported in Florida that the gusts reached almost 280 mph. The ACE is also the highest on record worldwide. Its size is second highest for a tropical cyclone behind Whitney. Due to these circumstances, Rita was dubbed "The Great Storm of 2017" and "Megastorm Rita". In the aftermath of Rita, U.S. president Donald Trump said: "I am speechless. The nature really tested me on my plans.", as he spoke in destroyed Disneyland in Florida. At the same time, Floridan governor Rick Scott resigned and left the responsibility to Trump for cleaning and rehabilitation of Florida. Retirement Due to the unforgettable impact of the storm, the World Meteorological Organization decided to retire the name Rita and will never be used again for another Atlantic hurricane. The name ''Rina ''was chosen to replace the name in 2023. Category:Intense Storms Category:Stronger than Hurricane Patricia Category:Farm River's Creations Category:Destructive storms Category:Deadly storms Category:Stronger Than Hurricane Wilma Category:Category 5 hurricanes Category:Cataclysmic Storms